Arguably, the most renowned among the thirty-three known world’s bullion coins is the South African Krugerrand. Out of these bullion coins, 18 are produced with gold, 9 are made of silver, 1 is made of palladium, and 5 are produced with platinum.

Brief History

The South African Mint Company in 1997 introduced the Krugerrand. The purpose is to make it a legal tender in order to market and popularize South African gold across the globe. The Krugerrand accounted for approximately 90 percent of the entire gold coin market thirteen years after it was minted and introduced.

Varieties of the Krugerrand

The South African Krugerrand comes in four different varieties as follows:

Each coin is 22K, comprising of 91.67 percent pure gold and 8.33 percent copper. The essence of this composition is to ensure that the coin is harder and increasingly durable. Consequently, it can resist dents and scratches.

The Structure of the South African Krugerrand

The face of Stephanus Jonannes Paulus Kruger (South African number 5 president) is seen on the obverse of the krugerrand. Another feature on the obverse of the coin is the Afrikaans as well as the English version of “South Africa”.

The reverse of the coin bears a springbok image, the South African national symbol. Also, the reverse features the coin’s name in block letters, and the coin’s gold content written in both Afrikaans and English.

Special Samples of the Krugerrand

Proof Krugerrand is the special sample of the coin minted and made available as collector’s coins. The special samples are usually the most priced among all the bullion krugerrand varieties listed above.

The popularity of the South African Krugerrand inspired other nations like United States, Canada, UK, and Australia to mint their own precious metal coins.